Gwendolyn "Blondy" Chisolm, the rapper and singer-songwriter who co-founded The Sequence, has died aged 66. According to Billboard, Chisolm suffered a short illness before her death on Monday, April 6.

"My sister gave a lot of herself to the music industry," Chisolm's sister Monica Scott said in a statement shared with the publication on behalf of the Chisolm and Scott families. "Everyone knows her famous lyrics and melodies, which continue to bring joy to millions of people. She was a creative force who touched countless hearts." Chisolm established the hip-hop collective with Cheryl "The Pearl" Cook and Angie Stone in 1979 and swiftly achieved success with "Funk You Up." Stone died in March 2025 at the age of 63 following a car accident. Brought up in Columbia, South Carolina, Chisolm grew up alongside her group mates and studied at C.A. Johnson High School, where they were all cheerleaders. During their teenage years, the extracurricular pursuit provided them with the cheers that formed the foundation for their music. "'Funk You Up' comes from a cheer," Chisolm told Rolling Stone in 2017.

The Sequence became the first female hip-hop group to join Sugar Hill Records and issued three albums before separating in 1985. "Funk You Up" was notably interpolated by Dr. Dre on "Keep Their Heads Ringin'" and influenced Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars' "Uptown Funk."

The trio gained access to the label after securing a route backstage at a Sugarhill Gang concert. Chisolm had been given the tickets from her boss at the Super Saver where she was employed, but had to go against her mother's instructions in order to go.

"[My mom] said, 'If you walk out this door, don't you ever come back,'" she said. "I never went back." Despite all of that, the tickets weren't available at the box office as she had anticipated when she arrived.

Fortunately, Stone knew precisely what to say to get her way. "We didn't even know who he was or where he was taking us. All we knew was we were going in," Chisolm said.

"And when he was talking to us, we go, 'Oh, and by the way, we can sing and rap better than the Sugarhill Gang.'" Their self-assurance carried them far.

Chisolm no longer required her previous ambition of joining the Army and becoming a drill sergeant. She embarked on tour, produced albums, and travelled alongside the Sugarhill Gang.

The hip-hop revolution was flourishing across America and they were trailblazers within it. It wasn't entirely pleasant. Chisolm and her bandmates have discussed openly previously about being excluded from the financial rewards of their music.

"It hurts to know that, here you is, busting your ass, can barely feed yourself, can barely pay your bills, and everybody's just going on, and people making millions of dollars off something you created," she said. "That's a hurting feeling."